Some people loved it. Some people hated it. But there is no denying that Guardians of the Galaxy is a James Gunn movie through and through. Some people have taken issue with this first look at footage, while others are praising it as sheer genius. The director himself has now gone on record to explain some of his influences and other, odder choices, walking Total Film through this two and a half minute introduction to Star-Lord and his space traipsing pals.
Indian Jones Influence
There is probably no film that influenced me more as a child - no film that excited me more or that I loved more - than Raiders of the Lost Ark. It not only influences how I see Guardians of the Galaxy, it influences how I live my life (which means the way for a woman to win my heart is to paint "love you" on her eyelids. Yes, I'm still single, why do you ask?)."
Silent Rocket
"We've recorded most of Bradley Cooper's dialogue already. I suppose you would expect me to tell you he's fantastic and his characterisation of Rocket will blow your mind - so don't believe me and just wait to see (or hear) it for yourself. In all truth, we hired Bradley Cooper because he's able to do both comedy and drama - it's the thing I look for most in the actors on all my films - and to truly sell Rocket - for you to believe a Raccoon can talk (and blow up and shoot tons of stuff) we need a well-rounded actor. To create the line-up shot for the trailer, 15 people worked on Rocket and 15 people worked on Groot. That's 30 people. For one shot."
Dawww, Groot
"I love Groot so much I get teary eyed when I think of him sometimes. Essentially, all the Guardians start out the movie as bastards - except Groot. He's an innocent. He's a hundred percent deadly and a hundred percent sweet. He's caught up in Rocket's life, really. The shot of Groot in the trailer took a few weeks to create, but the development of his look and how he moves took the better part of a year."
Gamora of the Galaxy
"Zoe Saldana is about as un-intimidating as you can imagine! She gets in the zone the moment that cameras start filming - but before that she's basically her loud, brash, completely lovable and goofball self. She got it easy with the makeup - it only took about four hours to put on, whereas it took Dave Bautista and Karen Gillan six hours or more. Zoe Saldana and Karen Gillan are the two most hardass characters in the movie - they're our Clint Eastwoods. It should take more than a few people by surprise. "
Edgy Humor
"The "bunch of a-holes" line is still in the trailer, which I love. That was an ad-lib I threw to Peter Serafinowicz on the day we were shooting. He wasn't sure he wanted to say it - it's not something British people say - but it works perfectly in the trailer. The movie has a lot of edgy humour, unusual for a comic book movie. But we were encouraged by Marvel to take risks, so we did. However, we never wanted the humour to get in the way of the fun or the emotional heart of the film - those things came first."
Star-Lord's Walkman
" Yes, 'Hooked On A Feeling' is used in the movie. That and a lot of other old songs are on Quill's mixed tape in his Sony Walkman. It's one of the few things he has from Earth. I don't think of it as a joke, because it's very dear to him. It's the umbilical cord that connects him to earth and the home and family he lost."
Behind Bars
" The Guardians are criminals, essentially - a thief, two thugs, a murderer, and a maniac. They end up in prison together. When you have those personalities all in one place at one time, you can imagine a scrap or two starting pretty easily."
Star-Lord's Spaceship
" At that point in the film, Star-Lord and the gang are facing off with a fleet of Ronan's Necrocraft. Someone's about to go down."
Nebula's Introduction
" Well, a lot of shots in the Comic-Con trailer were simply shots from make-up and camera tests before we ever filmed. I knew I wanted to add some shots of Nebula, as she's super badass (we only had one make-up test of her in the Comic-Con trailer - and it wasn't even Karen Gillan)."
The Collector
" We hadn't even shot any Benicio Del Toro when we did the Comic-Con trailer. We added more nearly-finished shots of Rocket and Groot, and some shots of space battles we didn't have back then. And then we added a few cool shots we didn't have because, well, we thought they looked cool. It's important to add that we left out some of our coolest characters - Lee Pace's Ronan the Accuser, Michael Rooker's Yondu, and Glenn Close's Nova Prime - because we want to save them for the full trailer in a couple months."
Rocket and Groot
" There is no doubt that the cinematic pinnacle of my career is our cameras circling around a maniacal raccoon shooting a machine gun on the back of a living tree. And I say this with as much modesty as I can muster - because certainly it is not me, but the hand of God guiding us all as we make this film - but it just may be the pinnacle of cinema in general. When we shot it we were twirling around an empty space in a giant set. But I think all of us could see the raccoon and the tree in our minds. They were already starting to form. I can't wait to share them with everyone in August."